Nutrition is key for successful recovery
Athletes, runners, and regular gym users all agree, a quick and full recovery is vital for success. Limiting fatigue and soreness post-exercise can help us and our equine athletes bounce back quickly and fully in readiness for our next ride, and many key recovery tips are feeding related. In addition to supporting exercise and performance recovery, nutrition also plays an important part during longer term rest and rehabilitation periods. Below we’ll discuss a few key points and products pertaining to the creation of ahorse’s R&R diet:

Consider the timeline
Strategies should change dependent on whether the horse is in full work, will be rehabbing for a short period of time, or will be out of work for an entire season. If the horse is in full work, maximising the quick recovery of the musculoskeletal system will be important. If they will be rehabbing for a few weeks, maintaining muscle tone as best as possible may be a priority, and if they’ll be resting for an entire season or longer, maintaining a cool head may become paramount.

• Regener8 is an ideal product to use in full work and during short term recovery periods.
• Convalescent Muesli helps maintain condition, digestion, and a cool head in medium to longer term recovery periods.

Ensure losses are replenished

Exercise burns energy stores, creates electrolyte losses, depletes body water, and increases oxygen metabolism. If a product is chosen that is suited to the horse’s workload, horses be able to replace the calories they burn during exercise. However, additional electrolyte losses occur on hot days and when the horse is in moderate to heavy work. In those situations, adding in our D&H Electrolytes to top up what is present in our Performance Range products will be beneficial to ensure electrolyte balance is maintained. Our electrolytes can be easily added to a feed or water bucket, but if they are added to a water bucket, ensure a second, fresh and clean, un-supplemented bucket is available so the horse’s full thirst can be quenched. Finally, providing antioxidants to counterbalance the oxidative stress that can occur from increased oxygen metabolism during work sessions can support a more fully recovery. Products like our ERS Cubes, Elite Sport Muesli, and Regener8 all have high Vitamin E content and QLC antioxidants to work synergistically together to raise total antioxidant capacity in the horse.

Longer term recoveries from injuries can equally increase basal metabolic rate and turn on repair processes in the body that are fuelled by key vitamins, minerals, and nutrients. Using products that are formulated specifically for recovery will take this into account.

D&H Bone Support helps nutritionally support bone turnover during times of increased demand (i.e. recovery and return to work). In addition to being fully balanced with vitamins, minerals, and nutrients the horse will need each day during their recovery, Convalescent Muesli provides our full range of digestive support, including pre- and pro-biotics, as well as our bespoke Fibre Complex piece, helping to maintain a healthy hindgut environment for the correct functionality of the microbes involved in fermentation whilst the horse is on box rest. This helps support the conversion of feed to energy, to increase the value of every meal to them.

Feeding for temperament
When horses are rehabilitating from an injury or illness, it’s important to re-introduce them to work slowly and with control. Convalescent Muesli is oat free, and has a low feeding rate, helping to maintain a cool head, especially when the recommended daily total volume of feed is split into at least two to three meals. Limiting the amount of starch provided per meal can help control an unwanted behavioural reaction, and therefore, spreading meals throughout the day with ideally at least four hours in between each meal can help. 

To further slowdown feeding rate during consumption of a meal, short chop fibre or chaff can be added. Fibergy is a very low starch and sugar blend, with added mint and oil, that can be mixed in with hard feeds like Convalescent Muesli for this purpose.